The present invention relates generally to flexible tonneau covers for vehicles and in particular to an improved bow apparatus for supporting a tonneau cover that employs a spring loaded end to couple to a rail on the cargo sidewalls of a pick-up truck or other vehicle.
Tonneau covers are generally defined as any device that can be used to cover a portion of a vehicle. While tonneau covers are generally used to cover convertible cars, boats and trailers, tonneau covers are most commonly associated with pick-up trucks. Both rigid and flexible tonneau covers are available for covering the cargo box of pick-up trucks. The present invention relates to flexible tonneau covers. Flexible tonneau covers for pick-up trucks typically include a rectangular frame made of extruded aluminum rails that are attached to the pick-up truck at the top of the cargo box and provide an attachment point for flanged members on the interior walls of the cargo box. Bowed members are coupled to the flanges or tangs of the flanged members and support a flexible fabric cover which prevents the elements and debris from entering the cargo box. The bowed members impart a tension to the flexible fabric cover that creates an outward curvature of the fabric cover to prevent standing water on the tonneau cover and facilitate runoff of rainwater, melted snow, dust and debris, so as to maintain an attractive appearance and prevent accelerated degradation of the cover material. The fabric is generally a woven material with a vinyl coating. The term xe2x80x9cfabricxe2x80x9d is used throughout this specification in the broad sense to mean a flexible sheet material that is not limited to a woven material.
In the past, the bowed members were coupled to the tangs on the interior walls of the cargo box by flexing the bowed members and mating or sliding an aperture or slot in the end of the bowed member to a tang. This method was limited by the amount of width variation in the cargo box of a vehicle, as the only method of adjusting the bowed member during installation was to bend it more or less. The variation in bending forces applied to the bowed member would also vary its dimensions when installed. Less bending force would translate into a flatter installation for the bowed member and flexible cover while more bending force would translate into a more bowed surface for the flexible cover. In some cases, a standard bowed member will not fit a nonstandard cargo box. For example, a standard bowed member may not be able to reach across the cargo box of a larger pick-up or the bowed member may not be able to bend or flex enough to fit into a smaller cargo box. Thus, predictability and repeatability for the tonneau cover installation is affected by a standard bowed member""s lack of adjustability.
It is an object of the present invention to provide a means to install the bowed members of a tonneau cover in a flexible manner so that variations in cargo box size will not effect the installation of the tonneau cover.
Accordingly, the present invention provides a tonneau cover for covering an area of a vehicle, the vehicle area being bounded by spaced sidewalls each having a top surface. The tonneau cover includes a flexible cover having side edges and a central region bounded by the side edges, the side edges being positionable above the vehicle spaced sidewalls so that the cover can extend over the vehicle area to be covered. A frame is included having a plurality of elongated rails each having two ends, whereby one of the rails is mounted on the top surface of each vehicle sidewall. A plurality of flanged members are coupled to the frame and mounted on the interior of the spaced sidewalls. At least one bowed member is flexibly coupled to the flanged members. The bowed member includes spring biased end plungers for varying its length and tensioning, wherein the bowed member supports the flexible fabric cover.
By providing a spring biased plunger at the end of the bowed member, the bowed member acquires length variability and may accommodate cargo boxes of variable dimensions. Additionally, the spring biased end plunger aids in the installation of the bowed member. The flexing of the bowed member is no longer the primary method of adjusting and installing the bowed member, as the relative travel of the spring biased end plunger with the cargo box may be used to position and mate an aperture in the end of the spring biased plunger to the tangs on the interior of the cargo box.
Further areas of applicability of the present invention will become apparent from the detailed description provided hereinafter. It should be understood that the detailed description and specific examples, while indicating the preferred embodiment of the invention, are intended for purposes of illustration only and are not intended to limit the scope of the invention.